Silver Peace Dollar

Silver Peace Dollars are less popular, smaller, and have a lower silver content than their larger predecessors the Morgan Dollars. Despite this, huge numbers of them were struck and placed into circulation during the years 1921 to 1935. The Peace Dollars were produced in the three mints of Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Denver. All of these coins feature a little more than three fourths of an ounce of silver at .773 pure ounces. Because of the limited number of years the Mint produced them and the large quantities they struck, it is fairly easy to amass the entire Peace Dollar collection.

Silver Peace Dollar History and Background

In 1918, Congress passed the Pittman Act which ordered the U.S. Treasury and Mint to create millions of silver dollars. In 1921, the Mint did not yet have a new design for the dollars, so it revived the Morgan Dollar one last time. It minted these until it could finalize the different design.

Anthony de Francisci the designer of the silver Peace Dollar was not an employee of the U.S. Mint. He entered a competition that the Federal Commission of Fine Arts held for a new silver dollar. In his obverse design, he modeled the traditional Lady Liberty using Teresa Cafarelli his 23 years old wife. Francisci's obverse and reverse designs for the new Peace Dollar won.

In 1921, the U.S. Mint struck its first of the new silver Peace Dollars in high relief. The problem was that the higher relief led to a poorly defined detail in the middle of the coins where the relief proved to be the highest. The Mint had to use greater pressure so that the dies would strike the coins correctly. Die production life decreased as a result, causing production costs to rise. The Mint solved the problem in 1922 by reducing the relief. This produced coins with a better, more even strike and also improved the life of the dies. The U.S. Mint then continued using this lower relief for all subsequent silver Peace Dollars it produced uninterrupted through 1928. It struck and issued the Peace Dollar coins a final two years in 1934 and 1935.

Silver Peace Dollar Physical Characteristics

The United States Mint guarantees all silver Peace Dollars for purity, weight, and content. The 1921 issues are of higher relief than later years.

Coin Design

The coins were designed to commemorate peace in Europe after World War I ended. The obverse front of the coin includes an art deco version of Lady Liberty based on designer Anthony de Francisci's wife Teresa Cafarelli. Lady Liberty faces in the direction left on the coin. She wears a diadem made to resemble spikes. Above the statue the word Liberty is inscribed. Beneath her is the motto “In God We Trust” and the date of issue.

The revere back of the coins have an Eagle which is perched upon a rock. In its claws it holds a laurel branch representing peace. Below the eagle the single word “Peace” is inscribed. Above the eagle two phrases are featured, “United States of America” as well as motto “E Pluribus Unum.” In the middle of the coin, the face value “One Dollar” appears. The lower right of the coin features a horizon with rays of sun emanating from it. Underneath the word “One” and atop the tail of the eagle is the location for the mint mark.

Coin Specifications

American Silver Peace Dollar bullion is only struck in one weight denomination: one ounce. The specifications for Peace Dollars include:

Mass: 26.730 grams

Diameter: 38.10 mm

Thickness: 2.40 mm

Silver Content: 90% Silver, 10% Copper

Silver Peace Dollar Pricing

All silver Peace Dollars have a face value of one dollar, exactly as expressed on the coins themselves. While law dictates that anyone can spend them for a dollar, in practice this is a symbolic value. The true value of Peace Dollars is generally significantly higher than the stated face value. The reason for this is that the coin's intrinsic value which the market determines is entirely separate from the face value stated by the Mint. With silver Peace Dollars, the fair market value of the coins is based mainly on the spot price of silver.

Silver prices go up and down every trading day. This means that the silver Peace Dollar prices also fluctuate each market day. You can see real time metals pricing on our home page.

Investing in Silver Peace Dollar Coins Through an IRA

Silver peace dollars are IRS approved to add to your self directed precious metals IRA. When you include actual physical silver bullion coins in the IRA, you gain a particular diversification in your portfolio that does not rise and fall with the stock and bond markets. Silver makes an attractive hedge alternative to gold because its prices are substantially lower.

The Internal Revenue Service permits certain kinds of IRAs to contain real precious metals including silver, gold, platinum, and palladium. This is why these accounts are often called precious metals IRAs. These types of IRA accounts are only allowed to hold bullion that the IRS approves like Peace Dollars. Whatever types of silver investors buy, the minimum first purchase amount is $5,000 to fund such a precious metals IRA. Additional purchases may be done in only $1,000 minimum amounts.

The IRS has particular requirements for precious metal holdings. A minimum level of purity must be demonstrated in the coins for them to be IRA eligible. The U.S. Mint guarantees that all of its Silver Peace Dollars match the IRS requirements. The IRS also insists that these coins and bullion be kept in depositories which it approves. Precious metal depositories take responsibility for maintaining and keeping safe all bullion they guard. The IRS also permits individuals who have pre-existing IRAs to move them over to a new self directed IRA. This is called a roll over.

Silver Peace Dollars are not sold by the U.S. Mint any longer. They must be purchased from coin dealers or individual collectors. The administrator of your precious metals IRA will handle these arrangements on your behalf once you issue the orders.

Sign up to learn more. It’s free!

If you’re worried about the economy and want to learn tips on how to protect your retirement savings in case of another systemic collapse, sign up to our monthly newsletter now for free! We cover topics such as: precious metals investing, inflation, currency devaluation, national debt, the Fed’s financial policies, world politics, and much more. Join now and we’ll send you a free PDF report entitled “5 scams to avoid when investing in bullion gold & silver”

Live Metal Pricing

Become a Smarter Investor!

Sign up to receive our FREE monthly newsletter to get recession-proof investment and retirement tips. Sign up now and we'll send you a free copy of our 20-page PDF report entitled "5 scams to avoid when investing in bullion gold & silver"

Last 3 Posts From Our Blog

The Chinese Premier Li Keqiang made a rare and somewhat startling admission this past week. He admitted that the Chinese government will have to support the economy as new pressures to national growth emerge. Translation: All is far from well with China economically. In this...

Recently released data revealed that the economy of the euro zone has experienced its slowest rate of growth in the last four years for the last three months in 2018. More recently than this, manufacturing data (for Germany and the block as a whole) uncovered...

This last week there was more bad news out of the student loan market bubble. For the fourth quarter of 2018 ending December 31st, the total American household debt reached an all-time high amount of $13.54 trillion. A large percentage of this comes from student...

Follow Us

Billionaire Quotes on Gold

Jim Rogers (net worth of $300 million)

M.G. George Muthoot (net worth 1.1 billion)

"If this business was as easy as it sounds, all my branch managers would be setting up their own gold loan companies."

George Soros (net worth of 22 billion)

"The U.S. dollar is very weak. Investors are moving to real assets."

Eike Batista (net worth of 30 billion)

"There is a massive shifting of wealth to new economic powers."

Carl Icahn (net worth of 12.5 billion)

"The system is not working properly."

Paul Tudor Jones (net worth of 3.3 billion)

"I have never been a gold bug, it is just an asset that, like everything else in life, has its time and place. And that time is now."

Gold IRA Guide’s mission is to provide you all the information you need for a safe precious metal investment through an IRA, 401k, SEP or any other retirement vehicle. Our team comprises of ex-Wall Street folks and independent financial journalists with a passion for alternative investments and portfolio protection/diversification. [learn more]

FTC Disclosure: we are a professional and independent site that aims at providing valuable information for people interested in retirement investing. Our content does not constitute financial advice. You are encouraged to talk to your financial advisor before making any investment decision. Also, in order to meet the running costs of this blog, we do receive compensation from ads and banners you see on the site. We also receive compensation from leads we refer to external companies.

Worried about the Economy? Inflation? National Debt? Money Printing? Currency debasement? Join our Newsletter and get expert recession-proof investment tips straight to your mailbox, completely free of charge! Join now and get a copy of our free PDF guide that will teach you everything you need to know about Gold IRA investing.

Valid email address required. Your information will never be shared or sold to a 3rd party. We only send out emails once a month. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Do NOT invest in precious metals...

...before requesting this free PDF guide. The information contained in this guide can help you save thousands of dollars in hidden fees and commissions. It's a must-have.